Baptismal Efficacy: A Catechetical Presentation, Pt. 1
/One of the things I keep hearing from friends and Facebook friends alike is, Paul, I’m confused about what you’re actually saying about Baptism.
The more I think about it, that can be an indication that in my recent attempts to articulate my position,[1] I haven’t been as clear as I’ve tried to be. Another possibility is that some of the things I’m saying are new and unfamiliar, and those who are trying to understand me simply lack the necessary theological categories to process my material.
Whatever the case may be, I have a desire to make myself as clear as possible. As a pastor, it’s my job to make sure that my teaching is understood by all. True, I can’t make people agree with me, but if they go away disagreeing with what I’m not saying, I’ll be the only one to blame.
In this series, I want to explain my position on Baptismal Efficacy as clearly and forthrightly as I can. To help with that, I'll be presenting this material in “catechetical” form. First, I will pose the most pressing and relevant questions, and then proceed to answer those questions to the best of my ability.
Questions About Baptismal Efficacy
1. You have said that the sacraments are “effectual means of salvation.” Where did you get that terminology from and what exactly does it mean?
I get this terminology directly from the Westminster Standards. In Question 91 of the Shorter Catechism, we read: “The sacraments become effectual means of salvation not from any virtue in them, or in him that doth administer them, but only by the blessing of Christ and the working of his Spirit in them that by faith receive them.”
In order to grasp this, you have to know what it means to say that something is a “means of grace.” In simple terms, a means is a medium, instrument, or vehicle through which something is communicated. To be clear then, I affirm that God communicates the benefits of redemption to us through various appointed means, including the preaching of the word and the administration of the sacraments.[2]
It’s important to keep in mind, however, that in the sacraments (just like the word) God's grace is communicated in an objective manner. In order for it to become effectual unto salvation, the recipient must receive it by faith.
To state it concisely: Baptism is an objective means by which God communicates His grace, and Faith is the subjective means by which that grace is received.
The basis for this position can be seen in two examples from Scripture. In Hebrews 4:2, we learn that much of the Exodus generation perished in the wilderness but not because God withheld His grace from the people (indeed they all heard the preaching of the word). Rather, the people perished because they didn’t receive it by faith: “The word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.”
The same thing can be seen with Baptism. When a baptized person fails to obtain salvation, the reason is not that God somehow withheld His grace. The problem is that the person did not receive what God had given him by the hand of faith. This is why Jesus said, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned.”
So, yes, I believe that in and through Baptism there is always a real and objective giving or communication of saving grace. But it is only when we receive it by faith that we can benefit from it in a saving way. This is what we might call the “objective-subjective paradigm,” or as other theologians might prefer, the “gift-reception paradigm” of Holy Baptism:
“In baptism, God offers, and we receive; God promises, and we believe; God acts, and we respond. God wraps up the gift of Christ in the means of grace; we receive and open the gift by faith.”[3]
Notes
[1] To get an idea of what I’ve been saying on this subject, see HERE for my article and HERE for the podcast interview about my article.
[2] Question 85 of the Westminster Shorter Catechism says: “To escape the wrath and curse of God due to us for sin, God requireth of us faith in Jesus Christ, repentance unto life, with the diligent use of all the outward means whereby Christ communicateth to us the benefits of redemption.” In Question 88, it says: “The outward and ordinary means whereby Christ communicates to us the benefits of redemption are his ordinances, especially the word, sacraments, and prayer; all which are made effectual to the elect for salvation.”
[3] Rich Lusk, Baptismal Efficacy and Baptismal Latency: A Sacramental Dialogue, found HERE. It is clear that Lusk is saying nothing different from what Calvin taught when he said: “From this sacrament, as from all others, we gain nothing, except insofar as we receive in faith.” John Calvin and Henry Beveridge, Institutes of the Christian Religion, vol. 3 (Edinburgh: The Calvin Translation Society, 1845), 339.